Reviews

Some of us tell kids that there's an overweight man living at the top of the Earth who delivers presents to everyone once a year; some of us tell kids that there's some sort of deity living in the sky who controls the world in ways we could not possibly hope to understand; some of us tell kids that

The Bluffworks Meridian Dress Shirt appeared an unlikely candidate for someone like me, but after months of wear it has cemented itself in my pack as my (professional) hiking (and traveling) shirt of choice.
I gave the Meridian a chance because I am such a big fan of Bluffwork's other products

The SANDMARC Pole (Compact Edition) and the SANDMARC Carbon Grip are GoPro accessories that make taking pictures of myself (and of other things) a little bit easier.
I know, an "action cam pole" is really just a fancy name for a selfie stick, but to be honest, sometimes it comes in handy -

The Big Agnes Copper Spur 2 Platinum is a lightweight, freestanding, two-person backpacking tent that's for anyone willing to spend $600 on their miniature house for the outdoors (or as I like to call it, my palace).
I got this tent just before my Continental Divide Trail thru-hike and have spent

It's true, a person can live on cheese, tortillas, and candy in the wilderness for weeks at a time; I'm living proof of this. Sadly, as incredible as the cheese/tortilla/candy diet can be, it leaves something to be desired - namely, food (or at least what my dad would call food).
In the world of

The LifeStraw is an inexpensive, easy-to-use, hollow-fiber water filter that is marketed as "ideal for hiking, backpacking, camping, travel, and emergency preparedness." After using a LifeStraw on the Continental Divide Trail, I can certainly see what makes it an attractive option to some people,

The Hyperlite Mountain Gear 3400 Southwest came with me on my Continental Divide Trail thru-hike (what's essentially the most greuling test on Earth for any piece of gear) and it performed exactly as I hoped it would - spectacularly.
It's currently my default pack and I've been using it since

I've never owned a wind shirt/jacket before and so the Montbell Tachyon Jacket was a new and exciting thing for me to test out. This jacket was a part of my Continental Divide Trail gear, and it accompanied me the entire length of the trail.
I used it extensively at high elevations in Colorado

Rain jackets and I have an interesting relationship. In a perfect world, they would be completely unnecessary, but the reality on the Continental Divide Trail is far from perfect and so I brought along the Montbell Torrent Flier Jacket to protect me from all the water (frozen or otherwise) I